Volume 3, Chapter 282 – The Smell of a Dead Person

When Lu Zhuxin opened her eyes again, the familiar crimson grassland stretched out before her.

She felt something constricting around her body.

She looked down, and her brows drew together.

“Tch… a full prison getup today, huh…”

She was wrapped in nothing but a thin, pure white prisoner’s garb, her hands and feet bound by silver chains.

Lu Zhuxin’s expression darkened as she yanked the chains off.

“What kind of taste is this supposed to be.”

The bewitching red fox materialized beside her, covering her mouth with one hand, eyes wide with alarm. “Y-Your Majesty!!”

Lu Zhuxin shot her a cold glare. “You seem to have a lot of free time on your hands?!”

“Your Majesty…” Hu Mei’er the red fox stumbled over her words. “Mei’er… Mei’er hasn’t been idle…”

“Mei’er is always waiting on standby for Your Majesty’s summons.”

“That way, Your Majesty’s orders can be relayed at a moment’s notice.”

Lu Zhuxin pressed a hand over her forehead, helpless.

The prerequisite for linking dreams was falling asleep. If Hu Mei’er was on standby twenty-four hours a day, that meant she was sleeping around the clock, didn’t it?

Wasn’t that still being idle?!

If you have that much free time, go find something useful to do. Don’t just lie around dreaming nonsense.

Even for maintaining the dream link, a scheduled contact window would suffice. There was no need to be on standby around the clock. Even in an emergency, a separate signal could be set up—there was no reason to keep the dream connection running with this much effort.

Look at what this girl had gotten up to with all that free time in the dream world.

“Forget it.” Lu Zhuxin rubbed her forehead.

Hu Mei’er meant well.

And Lu Zhuxin was not the type who couldn’t tolerate a subordinate’s harmless little quirks.

“Back to business.” Lu Zhuxin’s expression sobered, her tone turning serious. “Something unexpected has come up with the Chi family. The original strategy will need to change.”

Seeing that Lu Zhuxin wasn’t going to press the matter further, Hu Mei’er let out a quiet breath of relief.

Sleeping all the time really was boring—she could only find entertainment in the dream world to pass the hours.

Though, what should she play next?

“Ahem…” Hu Mei’er redirected her own attention. “What are Your Majesty’s instructions?”

“The plan to disrupt the Chi family’s marriage alliance needs to be reworked.” Lu Zhuxin spoke as she thought it through. “Before, I didn’t want to move directly against Lingxiao Sword Sect and the Song family—those two forces are powerful, and our intelligence network has difficulty penetrating them, so I shifted the approach to the Chi family as the weakest point… “

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“But now, if we want to make the Chi family lose all faith in this marriage, we will still need to do something about the Song family and Lingxiao Sword Sect.”

Lu Zhuxin hesitated slightly. “Have you managed to find out Song Shixuan’s true identity?”

Hu Mei’er replied, “Apologies, Your Majesty. We have not.”

Lu Zhuxin was unsurprised. “It’s fine. I believe I already have some idea of who she might be.”

“Right now, I need you to take care of a few things for me.”

“Track down the whereabouts of every Lingxiao Sword Sect disciple currently within Beihe Commandery.”

“Understood.” Hu Mei’er nodded. “I’ll have Elder Huang look into it. Does Your Majesty have any other instructions?”

“Second—help me spread some news.” Lu Zhuxin smiled lightly. “Let it slip that a reincarnated Sword Venerable has appeared within the Chi family.”

Chi Xiyan had moved quickly to suppress any word of the Holy Sword Body, and had made everyone who witnessed Chi Muxue’s spiritual root test sign a Dao Contract.

But Song Shixuan alone had given only a verbal promise—without signing that contract.

Spreading word of the Holy Sword Body’s emergence was meant to plant doubt in Chi Xiyan’s mind about the Song family’s trustworthiness.

Chi Xiyan was a merchant. And what merchants despised above all else was someone who said one thing and did another.

And this was only the beginning.

“A reincarnated Sword Venerable?” Surprise flickered across Hu Mei’er’s face, but she didn’t ask further. “I’ll have the sisters spread the word.”

Lu Zhuxin stroked her chin, thinking. “That wolf clan elder—he’s been behaving himself, I take it?”

“Your Majesty, ever since Princess Lianshuang entered the Chi residence, that wolf clan elder has kept to himself without leaving his quarters. The Yellow Fox sisters have had their eyes on him this whole time.” Hu Mei’er asked, “Does Your Majesty need something from him?”

Lu Zhuxin said, “The wolf clan possesses extraordinary physical might and unmatched combat power. I wonder how they compare to human sword cultivators of the same level?”

“…” Hu Mei’er considered for a moment. “In terms of raw physicality, the wolf clan would naturally win. But in terms of offensive power, sword cultivators would have the edge. Though there is significant variation among sword cultivators as well… so it’s hard to say how a real fight would go.”

“Is Your Majesty thinking of having that wolf clan elder kill someone?”

Lu Zhuxin mulled it over. “Hard to say. Let’s keep it as an option for now. He may prove useful.”

The fox clan’s combat strength was lacking, with few truly powerful fighters among their ranks.

If they needed to kill a powerful sword cultivator within the human empire, the fox clan’s own forces simply couldn’t do it alone.

Outside of Lu Zhuxin, a Ninth-Tail Fox of the Eighth Realm, acting personally—they would have to borrow someone else’s strength.

“Understood.” Hu Mei’er nodded. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

“How is Song Shiyuan settling in at Lingxu Sword Sect?”

“Reporting to Your Majesty—according to news passed back by Sect Master Huang, everything is proceeding as normal.”

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Lu Zhuxin paused. “Since Song Shiyuan has joined Lingxu Sword Sect, let her learn some of the sect’s techniques and methods. After all, more skills never hurt anyone.”

“Of course, not just Lingxu Sword Sect’s sword arts—any technique she has the opportunity to learn, let her learn it.”

The skills mastered by a conquered female lead could be drawn upon by Lu Zhuxin.

The more skills a conquered female lead possessed, the broader Lu Zhuxin’s own available abilities became.

However, using those skills required Lu Zhuxin to spend Heavenly Fortune points—unless the female leads personally taught those skills to Lu Zhuxin themselves.

Chi Xiyan was a sword cultivator as well, but the sword arts she had studied came from the Chi family’s money-driven acquisition of various techniques—a scattered collection, far inferior to the lineage passed down within the Seven Sword Sects.

If Lu Zhuxin truly wanted to learn advanced sword arts, Song Shiyuan was the best starting point.

…

At that very moment, far away at Lingxu Sword Sect, the sect’s young junior sister suddenly shivered.

“Strange?” She rubbed her arms in confusion.

“Why do I suddenly feel a chill down my spine?”

…

After checking in with Hu Mei’er on the general state of affairs across the fox clan’s territories, Lu Zhuxin left the dream.

She glanced outside. The sky was still early.

Gazing upward, Lu Zhuxin turned over the plan she had just worked through.

The plan was still only a rough outline. Before it could be put into motion, there was one thing that needed to be confirmed.

“Song Shixuan’s true identity…”

‘To be able to stand in for Song Shixuan, she would have to know Song Shixuan very well—someone close to her.’

‘If I think along those lines, the possibilities narrow considerably.’

‘But just who is she…’

Lu Zhuxin rose and pushed open the door to step outside.

In the courtyard, Bu Lianshuang was still faithfully at her post.

She was holding a watering can, tending to the flowers.

At the sound of footsteps, she turned and saw Lu Zhuxin step out, a hint of surprise in her eyes. “Miss, wouldn’t you like to rest a little longer?”

Lu Zhuxin raised a brow.

Her Eighth Realm senses were giving her a clear read—several powerful presences were lurking just beyond the perimeter of the courtyard.

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Those presences had not been there before.

Evidently, Chi Jingwen had sent people to guard Lu Zhuxin.

Ha. That old man really was pragmatic. Before this, Chi Muxue had never been afforded treatment like this.

But protection also meant surveillance.

Chi Jingwen had increased the level of protection around her, and along with it, the level of scrutiny.

This made it abundantly clear just how seriously he was taking her now.

Lu Zhuxin knew perfectly well—that old fox Chi Jingwen had never once let his suspicions of her rest.

The moment Lu Zhuxin showed any inclination that ran counter to the Chi family’s interests, this dangerous seedling would be snuffed out in its cradle immediately.

Of course, the Holy Sword Body’s aura served as her shield for now. As long as she hadn’t completely turned against them, Chi Jingwen wouldn’t make a move against her.

As long as Lu Zhuxin was not an enemy of the Chi family and continued to demonstrate sufficient value to them—even if her identity as the Chi family’s daughter was false, it could slowly become real with time.

“Shuang’er, I’d like to head to the Chi family’s study hall and look through some sword cultivation texts. Would you come with me?”

Clang. The watering can slipped from Bu Lianshuang’s hands and hit the ground.

Lu Zhuxin turned her head slightly, looking at Bu Lianshuang with a puzzled expression.

What was wrong with this girl? Had she worked herself dull doing chores?

Bu Lianshuang pressed a trembling hand against her chest, where her heart was hammering away. “Miss, are you talking to me?”

Lu Zhuxin was almost amused despite herself. She said flatly, “Is there anyone else here besides you and me?”

“No… there isn’t…” Bu Lianshuang placed both hands gently over her chest, a joy she couldn’t hide shining in her eyes. “So Miss is… inviting me?”

Lu Zhuxin let out a small click of her tongue, her tone impatient. “If you don’t want to come, forget it. I can go alone.”

“I’m coming, I’m coming!” Bu Lianshuang said at once. “I want to go!”

“Then let’s go.” With that, Lu Zhuxin walked straight out.

Bu Lianshuang watched Lu Zhuxin’s retreating figure, a brilliance dancing in her beautiful eyes.

This was the first time the little fox miss had ever invited her somewhere—no Chi family eldest miss hovering nearby as an unwanted third wheel, just the two of them.

Did this mean she and the little fox miss had grown a little closer than before?

At the thought, Bu Lianshuang’s steps grew noticeably lighter.

Lu Zhuxin listened to Bu Lianshuang’s footsteps and felt the faint urge to laugh.

She wasn’t going out for leisure.

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She was going to find Song Shixuan—to engineer a chance encounter.

She didn’t know exactly where Song Shixuan was right now, but Song Shixuan had already learned of the Holy Sword Body’s existence. Knowing Chi Jingwen’s style, he wouldn’t be put at ease by a simple verbal promise alone.

So as long as Lu Zhuxin headed in the direction where the strongest presences were gathered, there was a reasonable chance of running into Song Shixuan.

…

Along the way, Bu Lianshuang bounced around like an excited puppy let off its leash.

“Miss, look—bamboo! Green bamboo!”

“Miss, look quickly, there are red carp in the water!”

“Miss, look over there! A round, chubby little sparrow!”

“Miss! The Chi family estate is enormous!”

Lu Zhuxin couldn’t help pressing a hand to her forehead.

She felt less like someone on her way to handle business and more like someone out walking their dog.

Burning off some of this girl’s energy might at least get her to settle down a little.

Fortunately, this didn’t go on for too long.

When Lu Zhuxin stepped into the Chi family’s study hall once more, she heard Song Shixuan’s voice.

“The way of the sword is, in its own way, the way of a person…”

“The principles behind script, technique, and method are all the same…”

Song Shixuan was actually seated inside the study hall, holding a lecture for a group of young boys and girls who had only just begun their training.

She used her finger as a blade, demonstrating sword techniques before them all.

Pale silver sword qi flowed in and out from her fingertip, drawing gasps of astonishment from the young students.

She used her sword finger as a brush, sword qi as ink, and the empty air as her canvas.

Layer upon layer of technique and illusion took shape in the space above her.

Even Lu Zhuxin couldn’t help but murmur in quiet admiration. “This Song Shixuan really does have skill. She isn’t even a sword cultivator, and yet she’s brought the way of the sword to this level.”

No wonder she could impersonate Lingxiao Sword Sect’s young sect master so convincingly.

While the others were lost in admiration for Song Shixuan’s mastery of the sword path, Bu Lianshuang was staring at her with a furrowed brow.

“Miss,” she said quietly, “that person… there seems to be a strange smell coming from her.”

“Like the smell of a dead person.”